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Amazon’s tablet details revealed

The next-gen Kindle gets the tablet treatment at last. Click on for all the juicy info…

05 September 2011/15:20BST

Rumours of an Amazon Kindle tablet have been traversing the interwebs for quite a while now and those of you holding out for the much-speculated mystery device will be glad to hear that some solid details have emerged at last, courtesy of the folks over at Tech Crunch.

Hardware

No official pictures are available as yet but the single core-powered device is reported to be very similar to the BlackBerry Playbook, thanks to its 7in capacitive backlit screen and black rubberised back, although there will be no camera present and only 6GB of memory available. The device will be a Wi-Fi-only affair at launch, although a 3G version is also in the works.

OS

The new Kindle will be powered by a very heavily modified older version of Android, where Google’s apps and Market will be replaced by Amazon’s own App and Content Stores – no doubt an effort to increase its already tight grip on the online market.

Services

Amazon’s Cloud and Instant Video players are also included and with only 6GB of onboard storage, these cloud-based services will certainly see a lot of use. A Kindle app similar to the iOS and Android versions will of course also be included.

Price

A tantalisingly tempting price of US$250 has been announced, which competes directly with the Nook colour, and importantly slices the cost to half that of the cheapest iPad. Amazon is also offering a year’s free Amazon Prime subscription (worth $79) to sweeten the deal.

Overall the new Kindle is set to be a strong player, even in the increasingly saturated tablet market. Due to be released at the end of November, with a 10in version slated for a 2012 release, things look to be heating up even more in the tablet wars. Game on.